Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Revisiting my OLW - Savoring a Book

Today I join my fellow bloggers in "serving up a slice" 
to the Tuesday Slice of Life sponsored by 

I have a book club with two dear friends who have second homes in Arizona and Canada. They are frequently out of town when our book club meets, so we created a virtual book club.  When I learned that my daughter and her husband play games with some of his siblings (he's #5 of 8 children) via google chat, I decided that this would be the perfect way to meet and chat for our book club meetings.  We select a book, report in when we've finished it, and then select a time for our book club meetings.  My daughter joined us for our first chat to show us how to do it.  None of us is proficient in the world of technology, but we've managed to giggle our way through our glitches.  It's an adventure each time we get together!

Renae is a voracious reader and always the first one to report back that she's finished the book.  It takes Coleen and me a little longer.   She was halfway finished, and I had a cross country flight last week so Coleen contacted Renae with our idea to meet and chat on Wednesday or Friday this week.  Oops, that won't work.  Renae is heading out of town for a wedding and camping along the way.  Next week, Coleen is helping her daughter and son-in-law move to Michigan for medical school.  Coleen tossed out August 11th as a possibility, but I have a friend who offered four dates that she could see me while she's visiting Seattle, and that's the only day I was available.  So now we're looking at Aug. 12th or 14th.  I hope I can still remember the book by then.

Since I lost my focus for my OLW in 2013, I committed here to revisit my OLW, savor, every 5th Tuesday during 2014.  When I'm reading a book quickly (a rare occasion for me), I find myself intentionally slowing down as I near the end of the book.  I like to have plenty of time to make predictions and think about how the book will end.  I'm reluctant to say goodbye to the characters and want to savor the remaining moments I have with them.  So today I'm writing my SOL on Monday (another rare event), doing laundry, commenting on the last two chapters I've read in my professional book club, and maybe even taking a walk before I reward myself with time to savor the last 33 pages with Nao and Ruth.  Isn't it interesting that I'm rewarding myself today with time to savor the ending by prolonging the time until I finish A Tale for the Time Being?  I can't wait to discuss this novel with my friends on google chat.  Please share the books you've been savoring this summer in the comments.  

7 comments:

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  2. Isn't it interesting how very busy we are, traveling here and there, even challenging to get only 3 people together. Summer in early June seems to yawn before us, but zooms so fast. I too slow down at the end Ramona, savoring those pages. A favorite book this summer, a verse novel that I re-read, is Crossover by Kwame Alexander. Glad you got the Google Hangout figured out-great idea!

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  3. I love your OLW. Funny that you should write this slice, because I thought about revisiting my OLW for today's slice. You've given me a good reminder to "check in" with it, even if I don't write about it. Love the idea of your virtual book club too.
    This summer I've read quite a few books I want to share with my students, including The Boy on The Porch and The Secret Hum of a Daisy.
    I'm making time for adult books too- and just finished Into the Wild. I'm loving Daring Greatly.

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  4. I just finished My Reading Life by Pat Conroy. Amazing! Now I have so many titles and authors on my "Wanna Read" list, beginning with some rereads of Conroy's The Water is Wide and The Great Santini, then one of his I haven't read yet, The Death of Santini.

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  5. Savor, such a great word. And I love the idea of reflecting on your OLW on the fifth Tuesday. I savor end reading a couple middle grade books : the Adventures of Beanboy which was a surprise and a delight for me. Also liked Glimpse.

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  6. I haven't been savoring books this summer. I'm more in gulping mode. I have, though, been trying to break my habit of eating so fast. I've been trying to savor my food. Does that count?!? :-)

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  7. I love the idea of Google for a book chat. My book club met last month and we are going to try skyping to Hong Kong in August. I'll let you know how it goes. Google Chat may be an alternative! Our last book was THE INVENTION OF WINGS by Sue Monk Kidd. Last year we read Erica Bauermeister's SCHOOL OF ESSENTIAL INGREDIENTS and JOY FOR BEGINNERS. The second one was a great book club discussion. I'm not reading much this summer, not sure why, really unusual, but did love SARAH'S KEYS and just finished Anne Tyler's THE BEGINNER'S GOODBYE.

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